Anti-Corruption Specialisation of Prosecutors in Selected European Countries

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Anti-Corruption Specialisation of Prosecutors in Selected European Countries Anti-Corruption Division Directorate for Financial and Enterprise Affairs ACN Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) Anti-Corruption Network 2, rue André-Pascal, 75775 Paris Cedex 16, France for Eastern Europe and Central Asia Phone: +33(0)1 45241319, Fax: +33(0)1 44306307, E-mail: [email protected] Website: www.oecd.org/corruption/acn ANTI-CORRUPTION SPECIALISATION OF PROSECUTORS IN SELECTED EUROPEAN COUNTRIES Working Paper September 2011 Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development ANTI-CORRUPTION NETWORK FOR EASTERN EUROPE AND CENTRAL ASIA The Anti-Corruption Network for Eastern Europe and Central Asia (ACN) was established in 1998 to support its members in their fight against corruption by providing a regional forum for promotion of anti- corruption activities, exchange of information, elaboration of best practices and donor coordination. ACN is open for countries in Central, Eastern and South Eastern Europe, Caucasus and Central Asia. The OECD and EU members, international organisations, multilateral development banks, civil society and business associations also participate in its activities. The ACN Secretariat is based at the OECD Anti-Corruption Division. The Secretariat is guided by the ACN Steering Group and reports to the OECD Working Group on Bribery. © OECD 2011 You can copy, download or print OECD content for your own use, and you can include excerpts from OECD publications, databases and multimedia products in your own documents, presentations, blogs, websites and teaching materials, provided that suitable acknowledgment of OECD as source and copyright owner is given. All requests for public or commercial use and translation rights should be submitted to [email protected]. Requests for permission to photocopy portions of this material for public or commercial use shall be addressed directly to the Copyright Clearance Center (CCC) at [email protected] or the Centre français d’exploitation du droit de copie (CFC) at [email protected]. 2 INTRODUCTION This paper was prepared on the request of the General Prosecutor’s Office of Ukraine to the OECD Anti-Corruption Network for Eastern Europe and Central Asia (ACN) under the project “Strengthening the Capacity for Investigation and Prosecution of Corruption in Ukraine”. It analyses international standards and presents several models of anti-corruption specialisation of prosecutors in European countries in order to inform the debate about reforms of the prosecutorial service in Ukraine. This paper can be also useful to other countries who are reforming their prosecutorial systems to ensure more effective prosecution of corruption offences. The project is funded by the US Department of State’s Bureau for International Narcotics and Law Enforcement Affairs. Further information about the project is available on the ACN website1. The paper starts with a brief overview of relevant international standards on prosecutorial specialisation and some of the basic principles generally applied to prosecutors in European practice. The paper is further composed of four case studies of anti-corruption specialisation of the prosecution services in Hungary, Lithuania, Poland and Spain The chosen examples cover various approaches to specialisation – from individual specialised anti-corruption prosecutors to specialised divisions/units or institutions to prosecute corruption offences. The case-studies are prepared following the same structure and contain an overview of establishment and functioning of the anti-corruption specialisation in the prosecution services of the countries. They further cover institutional set-up, operation, human resources management, training, as well as other relevant aspects through which such specialisation is ensured in each country. They also provide an overview of various procedures and safeguards in place, such as oversight of investigation and prosecution of corruption cases, relations of specialised anti-corruption prosecutors with higher prosecutors, necessary changes in the overall institutional set-up of the prosecution system and other relevant issues. Where appropriate, the case studies also discuss rationale and ways how a crime-based approach to organisation of the prosecution service can be introduced. 1 http://www.oecd.org/document/32/0,3343,en_36595778_36595918_41420320_1_1_1_1,00.html 3 ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS Overall supervision to the development of this paper was provided by Ms. Tanya Khavanska, Manager of the ACN project “Strengthening the Capacity for Investigation and Prosecution of Corruption in Ukraine”. Ms. Tanya Khavanska also drafted the section on the international standards with support from Mr. Dmytro Kotliar, Resident Advisor to the ACN project “Strengthening the Capacity for Investigation and Prosecution of Corruption in Ukraine”. Mrs. Olga Savran, Manager of the ACN, has provided valuable input. Mr. Algimantas Kliunka, Chief Prosecutor of the Department for Investigations of Organised Crime and Corruption at the Prosecutor General’s Office of the Republic of Lithuania, wrote the case study on Lithuania, Mrs. Dr. Magdolna Hajdu, Deputy Head of the International and European Affairs Department at the Office of the Prosecutor General of the Republic of Hungary, wrote the case study on Hungary, Mr. Cezary Michalczuk, Senior Prosecutor at the General Prosecutor’s Office of Poland, wrote the case study on Poland, and Mr. David Martínez Madero, then Director of the Anti-Fraud Office of Catalonia, wrote the case study on Spain. The OECD ACN Secretariat would like to thank the Department of State of the United States for their financial support provided through the Project “Strengthening the Capacity for Investigation and Prosecution of Corruption in Ukraine”. 4 Contents INTRODUCTION ................................................................................................................................ 3 ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS ................................................................................................................... 4 1.INTERNATIONAL STANDARDS .................................................................................................. 7 1.1. Main Sources of International Standards ............................................................................ 7 1.2. Role of Prosecutors ................................................................................................................ 8 1.2.1. Prosecutors in the Criminal Justice System ................................................................... 8 1.2.2. Discretionary Powers of the Prosecutor ........................................................................ 9 1.2.3. Relationship of Prosecutors and Judges ...................................................................... 10 1.2.4. Relationship of Prosecutors and the Police ................................................................. 10 1.3. Independence ........................................................................................................................ 11 1.3.1. External and Internal Independence of Prosecutors .................................................. 11 1.3.2. Budgetary Independence .............................................................................................. 12 1.3.3. Recruitment, Promotion and Assessment of Prosecutors .......................................... 13 1.3.4. Accountability ................................................................................................................ 14 1.4. Anti-Corruption Specialisation ........................................................................................... 14 1.4.1. Specialisation Requirements ........................................................................................ 14 1.4.2. Anti-Corruption Training for Prosecutors ................................................................... 16 1.4.3. International Cooperation in Fighting Corruption ...................................................... 17 2. CASE-STUDIES ............................................................................................................................ 18 2.1. HUNGARY ........................................................................................................................... 18 2.1.1. General overview of the prosecution system .............................................................. 18 2.1.2. Establishment and institutional framework of the anti-corruption specialisation . 23 2.1.3. Operational and methodological aspects of work of anti-corruption prosecutors .. 25 2.1.4. Cooperation with other authorities and outside expertise ........................................ 26 2.1.5. Management of Human Resources ............................................................................... 27 2.1.6. Specialised training ....................................................................................................... 29 2.1.7. Conclusions .................................................................................................................... 32 2.2. LITHUANIA ......................................................................................................................... 33 2.2.1. General overview of the prosecution system .............................................................. 33 2.2.2. Establishment and institutional framework of the anti-corruption specialisation . 37 2.2.3. Operational and methodological aspects of work ......................................................
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